Here are some of the latest TV shows to land on DVD, led by a very funny British series about computer nerds.
"The IT Crowd" (MPI, 2006, $24.99). That's "IT" as in "Information Technology," and this half-hour British sitcom, although primarily an office-bound comedy, would pair nicely with "The Big Bang Theory."
The hysterical pilot episode provides the set-up: A tech-ignorant go-getter (Katherine Parkinson) is hired by a company in a London high-rise to oversee the two-man tech-support team, positioned in the burned-out basement. The nerdy techs (Chris O'Dowd, Richard Ayoade) are, of course, socially backward and especially frightened of women. But the three come together in their own dysfunctional way.
Their awkwardness — along with confrontations that involve their bombastic but clueless upper-management boss (Chris Morris) and, in Episode 4, a hilarious goth outcast (Noel Fielding) — lead to a slew of clever sight gags, wacky one-liners and truly bizarre behavior, with occasional nods to "Monty Python's Flying Circus."
If you're concerned about too much tech-talk, worry not. Who can't identify with our introduction to the central characters as they repeatedly answer the phone with, "Have you tried turning it off and on again?" (Be warned, there is some vulgar language here and there, including, in the second episode, the F-bomb.)
Extras: widescreen, deleted scenes, featurettes
"Road to the Big Leagues (Rumbo a Las Grandes Ligas)" (IndiePix, 2008, $24.95). This highly entertaining documentary explores the obsession with baseball held in the Dominican Republic, where many view the road to professional baseball as an alternative to a life of poverty. Interviewees include Dominican Republic-born big-leaguers, David Ortiz and Vladimir Guererro.
Extras: full frame, in Spanish with English subtitles, featurettes/interviews
"The Bielski Brothers" (History, 2006, $9.95). Excellent fact-based look at the story that was the basis for the recent film "Defiance," starring Daniel Craig and Liev Schreiber.
Three brothers defied the Nazis in the Soviet Republic of Belorussia by helping fellow Jews escape — some 1,200 men, women and children — to rebuild their lives while in hiding deep in the woods.
Extras: widescreen
"Hunting Hitler" (History, 1999, $19.95). This "History Undercover" episode, along with a bonus feature, explore plots to kill Adolf Hitler. Both are interesting documentaries that dig into the many and varied attempts by a variety of factions to assassinate the dictator during his years in power.
Extras: full frame, 2002 documentary "Dead Men's Secrets: Plotting to Kill Hitler"
"The Ascent of Money" (PBS, 2009, $24.99). Author and Harvard professor Niall Ferguson travels the globe to explore economic principles and their history.
Extras: widescreen
"I.O.U.S.A." (PBS, 2009, $24.99). This detailed account of America's increasing debt includes interviews with Warren Buffett, Alan Greenspan and many other experts.
Extras: widescreen, featurettes
"Blue Gold: World Water Wars" (PBS, 2008, $24.99). Malcolm McDowell narrates this look at global conflicts and their effect on the world's fresh-water supply.
Extras: widescreen
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